Tag: Aldridge

January 17th – It was a nice day on the canal, and as I came past Lathams Bridge on the way home, I couldn’t resist a couple of peaceful shots of the waterway. The marina doesn’t seem very busy at the moment, I must say, but the view is as lovely and serene as ever. You wouldn’t think you were only tens of metres from a busy, large marl pit and a bustling chemical waste transfer and treatment facility.

The new pond at Clayhanger, this year will be thirty years mature and no longer new is looking stark but beautiful, with the last of the previous night’s snow still hanging on on the shaded bank. I wonder how many times I’ve parked my bike and sat on that bench over the years? At least ten different bikes and it must be hundreds of times. Looking at the rot, I don’t think it’ll stand many more…

January 17th – Still off, but thankfully brighter if still sporting a rather productive cough, I headed up to Aldridge for a change of scenery.

I was feeling much brighter about myself, and looked for snowdrops, but was sadly unable to find any. But one winter reliable did please me with it’s colour – the gorse is looking stunning, particularly welcome in a little weak winter sun.

Going to have to watch the macro mode on the TZ100, it’s quite limiting at the moment…

October 22nd – A quick run up to Aldridge in the early afternoon reqarded me with great autumnal views and a surprise – almost submerged in dense thicket by the old railway bridge at Stubbers Green, what I think is an evening primrose, in strident yellow bloom.

I don’t know if this is normal at this time of year or an aberration, but it is rather beautiful and a lovely autumn find.

May 13th – A trip into Walsall and a journey back along the canal through Aldridge didn’t reward me with the urban wildlife treats I was hoping for; I still have yet to find the owls at Ridian Bridge, the herons were all camera shy and I saw neither hide nor hair of a kingfisher.

But I did see that the hawthorn (or may) blossom was in full force now; smelling strongly in that grubby, fetid way it does, the flowers are profuse this year and at the back of the old Duckhams plant in Aldridge, red and white make a lovely side-by-side display.

Not what I’d hoped for but not a bad show, either.

May 12th – Slowly recovering from my tribulations, I headed off to Birmingham along the canals and through Sandwell Valley Park for some light relief. It was a dreadfully dark, rain-spattered day but the birdlife I saw was incredible. From the bluetits near Park Hall to the young waterfowl all along the canals of the area, multiplication really is the name of the game.

Glad to see the six cygnets all present and correct at Catshill Junction, and who knew gulls could yawn?

April 20th – A better day, recovered now. Returning home on the canal near Aldridge, I noticed the swallows are coming into bloom. These green, spiky flowers will in turn turn into seed heads, and spread fluff over the area, irritating noses and car enthusiasts alike. A relative of the willow, they’re fascinating plants with a stunning seeding method.

January 8th – A miserable day, to be quite honest. I’d had plans, but I awoke late, and by the time I’d got the day’s jobs finished, the weather had turned drizzly, wet and unpleasant, and my plans for an afternoon riding over to north Warwickshire were lost.

I slipped out as dusk fell on a test ride, instead: I had stuff to do in Walsall Wood and Aldridge, and after a weekend monkeying with a bike with suspension, getting the damping control and lockout sorted, it needed testing, which was a good excuse for some restorative exertion.

On my way back, I passed Aldridge Marina, which looked rather wonderful in the thinniest, most insubstantial of mists. The combination of that, sodium light and woodsmoke made the scene magical.

Not a lost day, by any means, but not one I enjoyed much.

December 28th – It was one of those so cold, but so beautiful sunlight winter days when there was thin ice on the canal and the usual winter towpath quagmire had frozen solid, so I headed to Birmingham on the canal. From Aldridge, via Rushall Junction, Tower Hill, Aston and Brindley Place. After a call at the German Market I went up to Soho, over Sandwell Valley Park and home on NCN 5 via Yewtree and Walsall.

The kingfisher was the best that could be done – the birds are very active at the moment, but they don’t stay still for long! In the sunset photo, that’s St Augustine’s at Edgbaston, as viewed from the canal mainline at Rotton Park. the sky really was that colour.

A beautiful day, and a lovely ride.

August 10th – Popping up to Aldridge on my way to work, I noticed this character pointing the way to a local drainage supplies company, Venture Plastics, on Brickyard Road. 

In what seems to be a nod to Futurama’s Bender, it can’t have been an easy thing to do so well. Brilliant.

Wonder if it has a name? My compliments to the creator. A masterpiece, and brilliant advertising.

June 6th – Well, we had the large cocks last week, and now I found a pair of balls.

There I was, cycling up the Mellish Road (some way from the golf club and driving range) in the early morning, having picked up some components from Aldridge, when I spy an egg in the road. 

It wasn’t an egg, it was a golf ball. A little further on, uphill, I found another. 

A curious find.